National Geographic’s Travel Photo of the Year

We’ve seen and talked about plenty of incredibly impressive pictures that have combined fair amounts of skill, gear and even some luck to create noteworthy shots for the portfolio or Instagram. None of those Instagrammed location shots are as impressive as the 2017 National Geographic Travel Photographer Grand Prize Winner. Shot by Sergio Tapiro Velasco in the town of Comala in Mexico, “The Power of Nature” depicts an eruption of the Colima Volcano at the precise moment when the “friction of ash particles generated a big lightning of about 600 meters that connected ash and volcano, and illuminated most of the dark scene.” We’re not very confident we’d be able to capture a volcanic eruption or a lightning bolt as gorgeously as he did, let alone both of them at the perfect moment they intersect. This mind-blowing photograph was awarded the Grand Prize and was submitted in the Nature category. All of the entries across the Nature, Cities and People categories are also great, they just weren’t lightning bolt on an erupting volcano great.